In 2005, in Israel there was a terrible drought that has brought multi-million economic losses for farmers and for the state as a whole.

The situation was so deplorable that at any moment water coming out of the tap could just disappear. It makes no sense to argue with nature, but Israelis have decided that if laws of nature do not want to change to meet their needs, then there is a need to find a way out in the laws of man.

Then the prompt measures aimed at water recourses conservation were adopted, and campaign developed at the state level. Government, local authorities, all the media started informational work with the population. First of all, hefty fines for the excess expenditure of water were introduced, Israelis were banned to water lawns, wash cars with a hose, it was recommended to take a shower for no more than 2 minutes, and if someone had leaking pipes, they did not want to fix – they would be fined.

However, the amount of fresh water is not enough to provide everyone freely in Israel. Therefore, Israelis had to find new ways to increase the amount of water supply and reduce the amount of consumption. This process was controlled by the Agency on Water Resources Issues, found in 2007.

Particular emphasis was put on the desalination of sea water. As a result, over the past 10 years five powerful desalination plants started to function. Together they will provide the country with 113 billion liters of fresh water – there will be 757 billion liters by 2020. In addition, Israelis began using water from all the possible sources.

The figures are clear, now let me explain what this means in practice. For example, a school buys the equipment for collecting rainwater, which covers 90% of its needs: the remaining 10% are purchased from the city. In this case the purchase of the equipment pays for itself pretty quickly, because the water in Israel is very expensive. The very same school teaches children of rational use of water resources, and children - paradoxically - apply these skills at home and teach their parents to take care of water.

As for the use of seawater, then, as I have already said, it enters from the sea to cranes in less than an hour. About a third of all the water, which is used by the Israelis - from sea, and experts predict that the usage will reach at least 70%. This water is used for watering fields, and in the hygiene needs. Question: seaside cities of Ukraine would have prevented such a system?

Another source of water, which is used by Israelites, is re-purified water. Today, Israel is a leader in recycling and reuse of wastewater: it uses more than 80% of all wastewater in Israel. For example Spain uses only 17%.

Today, the drought does not threaten Israel. Or rather, Israel is not so dependent on what weather is outside. Here is another example of a rational approach to the problem.